UPDATE 2-Buffalo Wild Wings Q2 profit beats Street; shares rise

BANGALORE, July 29 Restaurant operator Buffalo
Wild Wings Inc (BWLD.O) posted a 46 percent rise in quarterly
profit, beating market estimates, and said it was confident of
achieving its targets for 2008, sending its shares up 13
percent.

Several initiatives like stores remodeling and marketing
the company has taken appeared to be working and boosting
sales, Morgan Keegan & Co Inc analyst Destin Tompkins said by
phone.

The operator of Buffalo Wild Wings Grill and Bar
restaurants earned $5.6 million, or 31 cents per share, for the
second quarter ended June 29. It reported a profit of $3.8
million, or 22 cents per share, last year.

Total revenue rose 29 percent to $97.9 million, said the
company, which competes with Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc
(RRGB.O) and CBRL Group Inc (CBRL.O).

Analysts on average expected a profit of 27 cents per
share, before exceptional items, on revenue of $94.5 million,
for the quarter, according to Reuters Estimates.

Average weekly sales for company-owned restaurants rose
10.7 percent to $40,572 for the second quarter, while
franchised restaurants averaged $46,390, up 5.4 percent from
the year-ago period.

"(Chicken) wing prices remained relatively low during the
quarter and at least to date, have not increased. So, they
continued to be favorable for the company," Tompkins said.

Tompkins, who has an "outperform" rating on the stock, said
he does not own any shares in Buffalo Wild Wings.

For 2008, the Minneapolis-based company said it was
confident of achieving its targets of net earnings growth of 25
percent, revenue growth of 20 percent, and unit growth of 15
percent.

"Same-store sales continue to be strong in July, with
increases of over 6 percent at company-owned and over 2 percent
at franchised restaurants," Chief Executive Officer Sally Smith
said in a statement.

Shares of the company were up at $35 in trading after the
bell, after closing at $31.04 Tuesday on Nasdaq. They have
gained more than 65 percent since touching their 52-week low of
$18.25 in January.
(Editing by Deepak Kannan)

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